The Ten

Saving the world when you don't know who you are

This is who we are

Two/Radarbot and the team return to Washington to search for Radar’s son, Mark Thomasson. Half the team is on lookout while Two/Radarbot, Nine/Flyboy and Ten/Orphan go in to talk with him. After a strangely tepid welcome, he guides them to the Argonauts’ computer archives, but turns around and fires an energy blaster at Subject Two’s head.

The others are stunned, a feeling made worse when Two stands back up to reveal a robotic shell underneath a fleshly exterior. Mark has had experience with the Radarbot before. During the first Jamboo encounter, the Argonauts were captured and replaced with robotic replacements. When the younger Mark Thomasson confronted the Radarbot, he was beaten and left in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

The team scramble to set Mark as east and Radarbot is forced to confront his biomechanical origin.
His memory and programming blank, Radarbot vows to make up for his previous actions by returning Radar to his college-age son.

With Mark’s assistance and Radarbot’s (his fascade now healing) unexpected knowledge of the Jamboo, they are able to piece together what happened to the world’s superhumans. The Jamboo made contact with a faction in the US government and traded technology for superhumans— a prized commodity in their gladiator-obsessed culture. Faking a full-scale invasion, the government simply rounded them up and turned over all of the high-profile heroes and villains.

However, the government held back several minor superhumans for their own defense, using them to enforce order and defend themselves. These superhumans were also used to quash dissent worldwide.

The Ten were mindwiped, but the replacement memories and programming had not yet been set when the accident that freed them occurred.

The team plans an assault on the primary base where they escaped, to draw out their opponents and stop the process of brainwashing.

Sneaking in under the cover of night, the team conducts a rolling firefight throughout the base— in the process defeating the three agents from the hospital and their missing companions (Four, Five, Seven and Eight) again. They are able to liberate another 20 superhumans and pursue the facility leader into the sub-levels. To contain the problem, the unnamed general sets off a nuclear bomb, hoping to clear out all the dangers to national security.

Discovering another use of his earth-controlling powers, Six rides the bomb deep into the Earth, presumably dying while exploding it too deep for it to destroy the base.

The heroes vow to hunt down the remaining conspirators within the government and force the Jamboo to return Earth’s superheroes.

Is that who we are?

Having returned to Condor’s woodland base, the team is informed by the computer that it has finally gained access to Condor’s Goldstarr files and that it can now identify the members of the Ten. Relieved (and a little worried given their flashbacks thus far), the team agrees to work together no matter what.

Subject One is identified as Fortunata, a retired mystic living with her family outside London. During her brief tenure with the Argonauts, she maintained a relationship with Radar (confirming their earlier emotional feelings) but complicating them by announcing that both of them are now married to other people.

Subject Two is identified as Radar of the Argonauts. (This is a misidentification. Two is Radar’s robot duplicate.

Subject Three’s identification is tentative as his appearance and powerset and appearance match Starborn, but his fingerprints do not. This is settled easily enough as they discover that Starborn’s twin brother was missing as well.

Subject Nine is a bit crestfallen to learn that he is Condor’s son and sidekick—Flyboy, not Condor himself. He also swears revenge upon learning that it was Laughingstock who forced his retirement through a sever beating.

Subject Ten is freaked out (unfortunate for a projecting empath) when she learns of her history as the Orphan and that she had been placed into a medical coma to stop her rampage. Even so, her actions were caused by her desire for a family and the team promises her that she has one now.

Subject Seven (who has been a rock throughout) has the worst news, discovering that he was accused of murder and rampaged through Las Vegas.

Subject VIII is identified as a former member of the teen group Five for the Future, Subject VI as a Los Angeles vigilante and Subject IV as an injured urban hero from Baltimore.

After a long discussion, the group stumbles upon the fact that all were either minor heroes or superhumans easily overlooked.

Coping with his past, Seven/Gibralter flees the base. At Ten’s prodding, the others go looking for him.

Seven is caught and knocked out by strange feral shadow beasts on a nearby mountaintop. The team arrives and barely push the monsters back through a dimensional gate. Shocking the others, One/Fortunata easily closes the rift— leaving a slight wrinkle in the fabric of space….which seems bad. When Seven recovers, he seems more certain than ever that he had been framed for murder.

Concerned, she teleports the entire group home…but by home she means her house outside London. There is a tear-filled reunion with her husband and daughter. The group also gets more details about the government’s forced recruitment to fight off the alien invasion. They also learn that Radar’s son has been acting as the caretaker of the Argonaut’s files— and the Argonauts had the most exposure to the Jamboo, having been kidnapped (and replaced by duplicates) before.

And who are they?

While resting in Condor’s Aerie base (Subject Nine having decided that he is Condor), the base computer receives an incoming satellite message. The call is coming (presumably) from France, where Laughingstock has been hiding himself since the government rounded up all the superhumans. Laughingstock is insane, but remarkably helpful. The criminal confirms that the superhumans did not all go willingly— and makes it sound as if the alien battle was simply a public relations stunt. He remains cryptic about their identities, but taunts them about his past defeat of Subject Nine. They are left creeped out in general, especially so considering that this means that the military is after them for extremely dark motives.

Subject’s Ten’s broadcast empathy sends everyone into a panic and her dislike of losing Eight convinces the team to return to the hospital in Roswell in an attempt to locate the other three subjects. Confirming the team’s suspicions that this is a poor plan, they find that their companions are nowhere to be found. Three men in black suits attack them — one with massive strength, another with mind-control powers and a third with storm control. The team is badly bruised, but they overcome their attackers and flee (in Condor’s jet).

As they escape, they see a flash of light. Their pursuers bombed the hospital in an attempt to stop them. News reports later tells the public that the hospital was the target of a terrorist attack.

Using computer resources, the team discovers that there were three major superhuman teams in the U.S.: the Argonauts (based in DC, but with no known base), UN Force/Peacekeepers (based in New York) and Goldstar (with major offices in New York, Los Angeles and DC). At Laughingstock’s earlier suggestion, the group decides to drive into DC and break into the Goldstarr offices to find out more information. Once there, they find themselves trounced by Laughingstock—who had been bored without any intelligent competition. He claims to have been a friend of Ten’s father and attempts to make off with her and Nine. The team rallies and drives the madman off, but the battle has drawn attention.

Subjects Four, Six, Five (who also disappeared in Roswell) and Eight attack them. Each are dressed in black suits and appear to believe themselves long-serving government agents. Rather than fight their former friends, the team bolts, barely escaping.

And we still don't know who we are...

On the way out of town, the group is forced to fight their way through a military checkpoint, which is armed with energy weapons and neutralizer equipment.

Having escaped their pursuers, our superpowered former captives made their way to Roswell, New Mexico, to meet up rendezvous with Subject Four and check on Subject Eight’s condition. Arriving during the town’s annual UFO festival, the team finds an abandoned house and raids their closets for some unobtrusive clothes and a little spending money. Subject Ten buys a UFO T-Shirt.

The hospital is swarming with military personnel, so the team is forced back home. At the same time, Subject Nine is finally able to open his (thus far useless) gauntlet and communicate with a computer who asks him if he is ready for pickup.

The group Subject VI at the house when they left, they return to find him almost melted into a fleshlike putty. This is troubling for the couple who lives there and returns to find him. The police having been called, the team prepares to flee. forced to leave Six behind.

Attempting to lose themselves in the parade, an enormous aircraft arrives and hovers over the group. Discovering an ability to fly using his gauntlets, Subject Nine realizes that this is the jet that the computer sent for him. The rest of the team (minus four, six and nine) escape.

The sentient computer asked Nine if he would like to return to base. He agrees and the team finds themselves whisked off to a camouflaged superhero base near Winchester, Va. The group later discovers that the base belonged to the superhuman hero The Condor.

Able to catch their breath, the team attempt to hack into the computer files (to help identify themselves). In the interim, they eat and search the Internet for clues.

They learn that one year ago, an alien force (the Jamboo) attacked Earth. The planet’s superhumans (heroes and villains) united to repel them, but were killed in the space battle. Internet conspiracies claim that the world’s leaders instead traded the superhumans for technology and promises to be kept independent.

Near this point, the group becomes more concerned about One’s power. It seems as if she has the ability to wish for things (like a new outfit) and have them simply appear.

A blog for your campaign

"Who am I again?"

Session One

*This is all several months post-game, so my memory may plan a few tricks on me. The 10 possible player characters were pre-rolled. On the first night, each PC rolled a d10 which selected their character for them. They then received a character sheet (blank except for casting call, physical description and room for notes.) Throughout the run, if any of the PCs rolled their subject number, the character managed to remember something about their past or their power set. I’m starting to document the campaign just in case we ever want to play in that universe again.

Two military transport trucks are traveling along a dirt road along the outskirts of an American military base. One stops to double check the sensitive machinery in the back while the other continues along. A mile ahead, the driver miscalculates a turn — sending the truck crashing against a boulder then flipping down an embankment.

Inside, the five canisters are damaged, leaking the viscous green coolant preserving their inhabitants. Subjects One, Three, Four, Eight and Ten wake up when the sensitive equipment inside is smashed. Each one finds him or herself naked in a transparent holding tube- some of which are now cracked open and all of which have lost some of the green containment gel.

Having helped each other free, the six discover that the driver and technician were killed in the crash. None of the subjects has any memory of who they are. Each has full amnesia.

By the time the second truck arrives, the refugees have already fled, trying to make their way around the lake that sits in the middle of the desert-like facility.

The PCs then spent quite a while grasping at straws, trying to remember things.

While making their way through around the lake, the group is attacked by 2 flying metal drones. These sentries display advanced technology, but during the battle Subject Three discovers the ability to fire energy bolts. Later, Eight discovers her ability to communicate with plants (not that it does her much good.) So, at least the PCs now know they’re in a super-powered genre.

Traveling around the lake, the team finds themselves ahead of the second truck. The two military officers try to contain the group, but are overcome as Subject Nine demonstrates fighting skill and Subject Ten mental blasts. A bullet fired at Subject Four causes his armor, wings and flaming sword to manifest. Subject Eight is seriously injured.

The remaining five canisters are opened, although Subject Six is unresponsive. The first group quickly updates them on their progress so far. Nine also has a strange gauntlet on his wrist.

Because of Eight’s injuries, it’s decided that Four will attempt a winged escape, trying to get her to the hospital. Easily surviving a second assault by the strange drone robots, the remaining seven subjects (carrying Subject Six)are able to use the second truck to reach the outskirts of the military base. They then abandon the truck, begging transport from an 18-wheeler passing by.

He informs them that the nearest hospital is in Roswell, NM. The group begins to head that way in hopes of rendezvousing with Eight and Four.